A cockle picker rescued with three other people from Morecambe Bay has been found guilty of breaching health and safety legislation. Calvin Scott, 39, of Slackeys Lane, Southport, had denied putting his life and the other three at risk, but was fined �600 and with �400 costs.
Scott told Lancaster Magistrates Court he had taken safety precautions.
The bench said the fine reflected the group's potential for profit rather than the offence's seriousness.
Cut off
Lancaster Magistrates heard from the Health and Safety Executive that Mr Scott and his group were cut off from the tide last April.
Mr Scott, his son, nephew and another were rescued by the RNLI hovercraft.
The court heard the group were trapped when a quad bike got stuck in the mud as the tide was coming in .
Mr Scott, who had worked on the bay for a year prior to the incident, said he had consulted tide tables, weather reports and had taken a compass with him.
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